The Portland daily press., 1887-11-30
MAJOR AND DEACON.
Pond Tells His story of the Beecher
Memorial Episode.

NEW YORK, Nov. 29.-Major j. b. Pond Is
very angry about Deacon 5. V. Whites let
ter TO Brooklyn paper, charging him with
Withholding from the Beecher monument
fund committee the proceeds of DR.. Parker's
lecture, and insinuating that Mr.. Pond was
keeping the money in order to cover the
losses sustained by his contract with DR..
Parker.
Deacon White has gone off at half-ccck, =
said Major Pond. HE has nothing to do
with the monument fund. The monument
committee will hear from me just as soon as
get ready to make statement and nc
amount of newspaper clamor is going to
hurry me. Mr.. Whites charges and recrim-
nations are altogether false. have not yet
handed over the net proceeds OF the lecture
because don't know what they amount to,
Bills are coming in every day, and what Will
be left Of the receipts after those are paid 1
have no idea.
"Mr. Whites talk about the money being
obtained from sympathetic community by
influencing the feelings Of those who loved
Mr.. Beecher with devotion so pure that
refined gold, if inwrought with 1T, would
have become dross, is rhetorical rubbish.
There was mighty little sentiment about the
affair. 1t was business matter. had an
attraction in the form Of a famous pulpit or
ator, and the people paid to see. and hear
him Just as they pay to see and hear other
lecturers whom have brought to this coun-
try. DR.. Parker was under contract to me,
and agreed to donate the proceeds OF the
lecture to the monument fund, after deduct
ing the regular pay of the lecturer and other
expenses. will carry out my agreement
when | see fit. Sentiment Devotion to
Beecher? Nonsensel The owners of the
Academy of Music would not deduct penny
- L.. 4-f4 4I<.h haD no nlrl lKYn M
pers, with one exception, charged the full
advertising rates, and had to keep man
over there a couple of weeks on salary of
$50 week to boom the affair. Sentiment is
all very nice, but it takes advertising and
booming to make money OCT Oh lecture.
than gold, which Deacon White says the
Plymouth Church people feel toward Mr..
Beecher, let me tell you Of an incident that
occurred recently. When it was announced
last week that Henry Irving would give a
matinee benefit tomorrow for the monument
fund, | offered my services to him to sell
tickets. A week ago | received a request
from q member of Plymouth Church, lady,
requesting me to send her 100 tickets to sell
to the congregation. did so. The congre-
CATION purchased Just three tickets"
The sum Of $500 which DR.. Parker OBJ
tanned from the proceeds of his labor OF love
in delivering the eulogy on Henry Ward
Beecher, and charged to expenses, Will
probably be paid by Thomas u. Snearman-
This qut stion of expense first came up when
the MOI lment committee, soon after Mr..
Beeche. 5 death, tried to get Dr. Parker to
come to this country and deliver an grafton
at the Academy. June "a was fixed for the
affair, but afterward Cancelled. When the
project was suggested to DIR. Parker he de-
manded $500 for his expenses coming to this
country and returning. Mr.. Shearman
agreed to pay the money, but was not called
upon to do so, as the scheme was aban-
doned. Later, DIR. Parker came here on his
lecture tour, and in the course of his stay
delivered the eulogy. He encountered no
additional expenses in doing so, but 1t Is
said he drew upon the proceeds of the ora
tion for the sum stipulated in the previous
agreement.
Although Mr.. Shearman did not agree to
pay the expenses of a lecturer coming over
here to pockets few American dollars, he
said Y, Sterday that he will probably stick to
his !; ement. He will not pay the $500 DR..
Park obtained for his labor OF love"
Mr.. Halliday was still uncertain yesterday
whether DIR. Parker would preach on Sun
day next. He would say very little about
DIR. Parker, but admitted that he had paid q
bill of $S9.73f for the board of the Doctor and
Mrs. Parker at the st. George Hotel. He
drew the check of the church society for
that amount.